Hasta La Gadget!

If you’re dreaming of always plugging your future AC-friendly hybrid in during the wee hours of the morning in order to juice up for the lowest price, you’re certainly using your noodle. But what about instances where you can’t choose when exactly you’ll be plugging in? Fret not, as Bill Ford and Company has you covered. The automaker, in collaboration with a slew of utility partners, has today introduced an intelligent vehicle-to-grid communications system that would theoretically enable vehicle owners to plug their ride in and tell it precisely when to begin and / or end charging via the navigation screen. Users could also define the completion time for charging or the desired rates in order to better control spending, though all that planning could be ruined by some random prankster who decides to yank your cable when you’re not looking. And really, who cares about saving a penny or two on charging when you can get two hundred and thirty miles per gallon? Oh, wait…

[Via HotHardware]

Filed under: Transportation

Ford’s vehicle-to-grid communications system charges plug-in whips on command originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Aug 2009 14:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Uh oh Mr. Pickens — looks like you’ve got some competition down in Texas. With the aforesaid energy baron scraping plans to plant 687 massive wind turbines in Texas’ panhandle, Baryonyx has stepped in to do the honors via a slightly different project. Just this past week, Baryonyx won a bid to create a pair of sizable offshore wind farms that Jerry Patterson — Commissioner of the Texas General Land Office — says “could be the biggest offshore wind farms in the nation.” Additionally, another lease was granted for a prospective wind energy development in the panhandle, and now the company is eager to get going on the green energy gigs. The best part of this whole plan involves that actual purpose of the turbines; aside from providing juice for grids, they’ll also be used to energize forthcoming Tier 4 server farms, with a minimum of 750 megawatts of power being pumped to two coastal areas all the while. Ma Earth would be proud.

[Via CNET]

Read – Baryonyx announcement [PDF]
Read – Patterson announcement [PDF]

Filed under: Science

Baryonyx to build largest offshore wind farms in the US, power massive data centers originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 23 Jul 2009 08:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Judging by the company’s recent infatuation with energy-efficient LED lighting solutions, we’re not at all surprised to see General Electric launching a daunting initiative that aims to cut homeowner energy consumption to zero by 2015. The so-called ‘Smart Grid’ is part of the Net Zero Home Project, which combines solar and wind energy (for on-site power generation) along with specialized appliances that can “communicate with utilities to participate in utility-run demand-response programs.” In other words, these intelligent devices can turn themselves down or off when no one’s around in order to shave peak-time consumption, and the in-your-face nature of always knowing exactly how much juice you’re wasting should also encourage conservation. Of course, we have all ideas that a Smart Grid-certified home will run you quite a bit more than you’re willing to pay, but hey, Ma Earth deserves it — doesn’t she?

[Via CNET]

Filed under: Household

GE’s Smart Grid aims to cut home energy consumption to zero, promote world peace originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 15 Jul 2009 09:46:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A company called AORA has developed a hybrid solar power plant in the Israeli desert. Comprised of a number of 100kWe base units, the operation is modular (additional units can be added) and it should be complete sometime in the next ten days. When operational, thirty mirrors will track the sun and direct its rays up to the 98.4 foot tall “flower,” where the concentrated sunlight heats compressed air, which in turn drives an electric turbine. When the sun has set for the day (or if it’s cloudy) the turbine can be run off of biodiesel, natural gas, or fossil fuels, allowing the plant to operate twenty-four hours. The only downside we can see is that the huge tower is sure to attract psychopaths like Lord Humungus and Wez — so you’ll want some weapons. More pics after the break.

[Via Inhabitat]

Continue reading AORA builds sci-fi-looking solar/hybrid plant in the Israeli desert

Filed under: Science

AORA builds sci-fi-looking solar/hybrid plant in the Israeli desert originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Jun 2009 17:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Go on and file this one away in the folder of “awesome things that could, but won’t ever happen.” As the brilliant minds around the world figure out how to solve vicious diseases, move motorcars with peanut oil and send engineers to fix a telescope in outer space, we still can’t buy a pack of AA cells that last longer than a month or two in our favorite toy. Some call it a limit of physics, some deem it a conspiracy. Whatever the case, we’ve no doubt whatsoever that a new silicon-containing carbon material — designed by Dow Corning Toray to double the capacity of existing Li-ion batteries — won’t ever have a real impact in our lives. Of course, it’s not like any consumer would actually benefit from having a netbook battery good for 16 hours, nor would wedding photographers enjoy being able to shoot 1,000 indoor shots without cracking the battery door open on their SB-600. No — that’s just absurd. C’mon Dow, prove us wrong here.

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets, Science

More scientific black magic promises to double Li-ion battery capacity originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 30 May 2009 23:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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